Benjamin Chen Bao Da.

The history of internet draws us back to the early development of communication network. Communication network allow different computers to be able to communicate with each other. With the conjunction of today’s development and infrastructure, we are linked together by internet. There are various forms of internet that people use today as a form of communication. For example electronic mail, hypertext and IRC (also know as online chat channels).

However, in my essay, I am going to talk more about how electronic mail (aka E-mail) we use today is being influenced by this development. Electronic mail, or e-mail might be the most heavily used feature of the internet. One can use it to send messages to anyone who is connected to the internet or connected to a computer network that has a connection to internet. As such, millions of people send and receive e-mails everyday. E-mail is a great way to keep up with distant relatives, friends, co-workers.

E-mail is often known as the killer application. Killer application in this case means, a computer program that is so useful or desirable that it proves the value of some underlying technology. This shows how powerful E-mail is today. E-mail started in the year 1965 as a way for multiple users of a time-sharing mainframe computer to communicate. Then, E-mail is being used to distribute news and bulletin board-like messages and it soon grew into discussion groups/ newsgroups. People in the 1970s would make use of E-mail to discuss about technical issues and cultural topics. (With reference to an online reading, History of the Internet From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

As compared to the modern era, 2007, e-mail had been totally revitalized to something people use in their daily lives. We use e-mail for multiple purposes today. For example, in a business organization employees communicates with their employer through e-mail and in our daily social life, we are making use of e-mail as a personal communication. The creation of e-mail has affected all of us so greatly that even in schools, students are taught to use e-mail and other forms of internet engines.

However, the question of how exactly e-mail works is something that not many know of. Well, here is a brief explanation of how the e-mail works. E-mail messages are sent in the same way as most internet data. The TCP protocol breaks your messages into packets, the IP protocol delivers the packets to the proper location, and then the TCP reassembles the message on the receiving mail server so it can be read. In the modern era, one can also attach binary files, such as pictures, videos, sounds and executable files to your e-mail messages. (With reference from textbook: How The Internet Works and Online readings: History of the Internet From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

One of the most contentious issues that surface on the internet in the last few years has to do with what internet users called spam. Spam is unsolicited junk e-mails that commercial companies send out, be it asking you to buy or review their services. Individuals are also capable of spamming too. Do you know that spam can cause major problems? Spam floods the internet with unwanted mail, which can lead to delayed or lost of mail. It clogs the Internet pipeline, making other information slower to send, or even delayed. Furthermore, spammers usually hide their real e-mail addresses and that made it even more difficult to track them down and block them from your e-mail.

Spam has other dangers as well. Spam is often used to swindle unsuspecting victims, for example by sending out false e-mails claiming someone needs to log in to a bank, and then sending the person to a spoofed bank site. The spammer then steals financial information. This technique is called phishing. Phishers attempt to fraudulently acquire sensitive information, such as passwords and credit card details, by masquerading as a trustworthy person or business in an electronic communication. Phishing is typically carried out using e-mail or an instant message, although phone contact has been used as well.

In conclusion, it is advisable to block spam. Various ways have been devised to block spam, including having e-mail filters on e-mail software- which is very common among most users nowadays. This software also examines the content of e-mail messages to try and determine whether it is spam. Furthermore, by enforcing technical requirements of the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) can be used to block mail coming from systems that are not compliant with the RFC standards. Many spammers use poorly written software or are unable to comply with the standards because they do not have legitimate control of the computer sending spam. (Information retrieved from online readings: E-mail Spam From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)


Works Cited

Preston, Gralla. How Internet Works, Eighth Edition. Indianapolis, IN 46240: Que, 2007.
History of the internet. (2006, August 20). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 21:23, January 26, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=History_of_the_Internet&oldid=70771572

E-mail Spam. (2007, January 25). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 21:30, January 26, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-mail_spam

Phishing. (2007, January 23). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 21:40, January 26, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phishing

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